The ships engines hummed so softly that soon they became undetectable over the sound of Kakarot's snoring. Even with the newly developed hyper-drive, space travel was long and arduous for Saiyans; they craved physical activity. The youngest of the three was nestled in the black headrest of the passenger's seat (respecting his ban from standing within ten feet of the controls); his head tilted in the direction of his brother, who glanced at his sleeping form and let out a small sharp sneer. Raditz envied his sibling's relaxed demeanour, stress and panic were foreign to him. Even though his parents would never admit it, there was always this static in his mind that would crawl upon his idle thoughts, and whisper that Kakarot was the favourite son. The eldest brother leaned back into his chair; his eyes were focused on the ceiling. In an attempt to disregard his insecurities, his attention focused on counting the metallic tiles and illuminated buttons, like a school child who had finished their exam but was not permitted to leave the room until further notice.
Vast galaxies rich in an abundance of colours swirled beyond the cockpit window, Vegeta paid no heed to the beauty that surrounded him. His eyes were fixed upon his holographic tablet, reading documents concerning the ministers' proposals and the current economic state of the provinces with such assiduity. His finger rhythmically taped the arm rest; the monotonous noise annoyed Raditz, yet he was powerless to object and instead tried to count in synchronicity to the beat.
The tranquil boredom was interrupted with a flash of light and a thunderous crash. Those who were not belted in were flung out of their seats, and collided with the space-craft's cold wall. The blazing of the warning siren violently reverberated in their eardrums. Kakarot freed himself without hesitation, and ran towards the sight of his brother using the pilot's chair to stable himself after the fall.
A black tangled mass of hair covered him, some had even fallen in his mouth, he was retching. Vegeta was going to burst with anger, which ingrate would dare to attack his ship? He snapped to his feet, pushing Raditz out of the way with more force than necessary.
'You better be able to tell me what in the name of Vegeta just happened!' The prince demanded with a snarl, dusting himself off as he lunged forward to the control panel.
'It appears we have collided with something-', Raditz paused as his face looked gaunt.'It has breeched our engines'.
Vegeta scowled and leaned in to survey the damage highlighted by the ship's computer. His gloved hands pressed orders into the large blue interactive screen. A holographic map highlighting their current location was displayed. Its blue hue contrasted against the red of the warning sirens and the dim emergency lights. The prince's eyes moved frantically across the map trying to pinpoint a suitable rest spot.
'Land the damn thing now! There's a Saiyan owned Dwarf planet in quadrant N34- take us there immediately!' He pointed, causing the map to glitch from the sharp disturbance.
'Yes sir.'
Vegeta's tail was puffed around his waist. The inkling of self control that remained within him held it firm, and stopped him from beating his pathetic excuse for a squadron. And to top it all off, the blaring sirens of the ship felt like someone had stuck his head in a vice. He turned to the youngest Saiyan, 'Kakarot go turn that noise off now.'
'How?'
Vegeta's face was illuminated by the intermittent flashing lights. It made his scowl all the more sinister, as he screamed in frustration at Kakarot's large naïve eyes.
'Smack the thing!'
The ship landed with awkward thump, the crew all felt the impact in their coccyges. Not a second after they had touched solid ground, the prince pushed a button on his scouter.
'This is prince Vegeta requesting a back up vessel quadrants NQ 34.'
Silence. His teeth clenched in frustration. He repeated the process. The Saiyan empire had recently increased their efforts to ensure communication satellites were spread throughout their annexed quadrants, the Prince had signed off the order himself. It was authorised in order to put a stop to situations like the one he was currently finding himself in. He doubted his future empire would suffer from such a blunder, the logical conclusion: it was his scouter.
'Raditz. Do you have wide area signal?'
'No sir. Only local.'
So it was no fault on his part. Vegeta balled his fists and let out a growl in frustration. How could he be surrounded by such imbeciles! This planet was Saiyan territory thus a satellite should have been in the vicinity. If they remain stranded he was going to personally obliterate the science and communication division for their complete and utter negligence.
He sneered, it had only been five minutes and already his patience had become non-exsitant, and the sound of Kakarott stretching his legs outside was not reviving it by any means.
'Wow the grass is pink here!'
Vegeta shuddered inwardly, the thought of being stranded with these two made him want take the risk and vacate with the malfunctioning vessel.
Raditz heart sank when he turned to inspect the damage on the ship. What was once beautiful and sleek was now battered and defiled. A heavy concoction of guilt and dread sat in his gut, no longer could he see his reflection on the surface of the rear thrusters. The insignia of the Saiyan Empire had too, been scratched on impact of the unknown object. The damage swallowed the side of the ship, he had had a taste of luxury but it seems was forced to spit it out.
Vegeta embarked on the planet, his skin was clammy but he was not sweating like Kakarot, who was already testing the gravity. He glanced at the sight Raditz's pathetic snivelling over the ship. It was time to return to the mission, and that meant getting a new mode of transportation and blasting of this disgustingly coloured ball.
'Let us scout the planet and see if we can locate a satellite,'
Vegeta ordered and ascended into the air, the other Saiyans followed suit.
'No not you Kakarot!' His arms crossed and tone patronising.
The prince looked at the youngest Saiyan directly.
'You stay with the ship!'
'But?'
'Silence!'
Kakarot hung his head in disappointment and slowly hovered in a sulk. He did not appreciate Vegeta's negative outlook, he always though that the guy need to relax more, he would go as far to say the prince was more likely to die of heart attack than on the battle field.
'If we need you we will call you on local line,' Vegeta shouted from afar before they shot off with a trail of glowing ki in their wake.
The two Saiyans were speeding around the dwarf planet, looking at the dearth of signal bars on their scouters. The thick and tepid air caused water droplets to form on their exposed skin, as more ki was having to be expended in order to slice through it.
'Prince Vegeta Sir,' Raditz shouted as they came to a halt.
'How many times do I have to tell you idiot? It's General when we are on missions.' His stern demeanour and gaze was sharp.
Raditz looked surly and swallowed his shame in a small gulp, he had not been on a mission with the Prince in so long, that he had forgotten the safety protocol. Vegeta however, did not care that his presence on a mission could make him a prime target-he revelled in the challenge of whatever his adversaries wanted to throw at him. Nonetheless, he respected the procedure.
'Yes sir.'
'Well what is it?' They both hovered above the dense flora that engulfed the surface like the fur upon their tails. Raditz quickly cleared his throat.
'My scouter has picked up some life forms, too high to be dumb animals but too low to be a threat.'
Their heads turned in the direction of the source. Vegeta sniffed the air, it smelt damp and musty–he did not think it suspicious.
For the second time that day, they were both knocked a couple of inches in the air as vibrations collided with their bodies, the sound of an explosion followed suit mere seconds after. It had come from the east. Without hesitation, the two Saiyans hurtled towards their target.
The ground was charred the odour of burnt metal and earth hit them as it danced in the wind. In the epicentre of the blackened earth, lay a contorted and unsightly hunk of metal and wires, a stark contrast to the delicate pink landscape.
They kept a reasonable distance away from mess, the air reeked.
'You're damn lucky we haven't destroyed-' A bald bi-ped clad in orange froze before the Saiyans. He scratched his head in bemusement, his eyes wide with fear and he began to whisper.
'Bulma … Bulmmaaaaa,' he drawled on the syllable.
'We have company.'
Raditz smirked as his screen displayed the weak power level of the alien, and he decided to inspect the mysterious object. Vegeta turned to him, 'Calibrate your scouter to their language!'
Raditz waved him off as he hovered towards the wreckage, 'Already have, heard the same tongue a couple of years back.'
Vegeta inspected the alien from his vantage point, it was very similar in appearance to a Saiyan; he presumed it to be male and as hairless as Nappa, minus the unsightly moustache. The being seemed to take some kind of a defensive stance. The Prince scoffed at the ridiculous notion that he would pose challenge. A morbid curiosity emerged from inside him, whether or not, he would enjoy torturing such a weak insect. It reminded him of some of the Elders' wives, attending court with small beasts floundering in their arms. Nappa once said that they used them to compensate for their now barren wombs. Those pets could easily best this miserable excuse for a fighter. Vegeta devilishly concluded that, that actually might serve as fitting entertainment.
Krillan gulped. His mouth was dry and his tongue felt like it had doubled in size as he looked upon the imposing figures. He was unaware of what these aliens wanted, but he had a good feeling that peace was not on the agenda. He instantly sensed he was outnumbered and outmatched. It did not matter how much money the heiress had, he should have never gone into space.
'Bulllmaaa,' he repeated.
Vegeta thought to himself with a hard scowl as to what is a "Bulma"?
'Hey bub! Hands off the generator!'
A woman came bounding through the vegetation towards them. She had been working on that project for months and this was her first trip to outer space. So no alien poking it with a stick was going to ruin it, that was for sure.
She held her head high, standing beside Krillin and eyed the Saiyans with a haughty curl on her lips.
The monk leaned in beside her, shading his mouth with his hand, 'Bulma, don't provoke them.'
Her ego did not understand the severity of the situation; this would not be the first time.
Raditz looked up at the second alien joining the small bald one, her power level was far more insignificant. He smirked at Vegeta and continued to inspect the machinery.
'Hey bub I warned you! Don't you dare touch that!'
Her threats fell on deaf ears.
'Don't make me hurt you!' She screamed, and clumsily grabbed a gun from the holster upon her back. Vegeta winced at the shrillness of her voice, if she had ki it would be lethal. He looked down at her hair which contrasted with the natural colours of the planet; terrible camouflage. The weapon she carried was as large as her, and she feebly needed two arms to hold it.
Beads of sweat were running off Krillin's forehead, Bulma's brashness was going to be the death of them. He was trying to form a plan of escape in his head–perhaps distracting them in some manner with a Solar Flare.
Raditz laughed at the woman's idle threats and pushed his hand into the chard remains and pulled out a large metal orb. The humans watched as the Capsule Corp. logo was juggled in front of them. Bulma saw red, and began flicking switches on her weapon, her scowl fixed on her target. Vegeta's ears pricked at the high frequency hum it produced, his curiosity peaked and his eyes were locked upon her nimble fingers.
'Bulma they have tails .. taiiiils,' Krillin warned. For a genius she could behave awfully foolish at times.
Her red lips lifted into a smirk, radiating her confidence as another small buzz was emitted from her weapon. A large blast of blue light shot out of her gun. Raditz went hurtling to the other side of the field. It was Vegeta's turn to smile, the sight of Raditz's incapacitated body lying amongst the scrap from the technology of a mere woman. How pathetic.
Bulma shoved her hand into her pocket. She was in charge here, and she had the deed to prove it.
'This planet: "Candyfloss Dreamland" belongs to capsule corporation.' She pointed aggressively at the piece of paper, her yellow gillet squeaked as her arm rubbed against it.
'It's mine! So leave now.'
Krillin's soul had left his body, he was as white as fresh Mount Poazu snow. Did Bulma really think he could handle these guys? He looked at Raditz dusting himself of with a sneer that rippled his flat nose. They were doomed. He had died once, he wasn't looking forward to meeting Yemma again.
Then suddenly a voice boomed from the sky, 'Stand down Raditz.'
Vegeta had enjoyed the woman's little display, but the novelty had worn off as soon as she started barking orders. It was time to put her in her place.
Looking at her smug face with the feeble piece of paper in her hand was the most hilarious thing, he might even dare say it was adorable. He strode over to her, it was his turn to smirk as he pointed his finger releasing a tiny ball of key. The paper burst into flames. Bulma's arm jolted back, dropping the remains of the deed, waving her hands checking for burns.
'You Jerk! Who do you think you are?'
Oh Prince Vegeta knew who he was. She grabbed her gun.
'If you think you can threaten me with that little toy, then I will incinerate you and the bald one here, before you can scream.'
Bulma looked at the man. His dark eyes pierced her with their gaze, he had a menacing aura and she finally felt what Krillin had been insinuating this whole time.
Bulma blinked in realisation. This guy meant serious business, and it was too late to flirt her way out of this. Time to fain innocence.
'What gun? What are you talking about?' Her nervous chuckle, was stuck in the top of her throat as she hastily tossed her gun over her shoulder. Secretly praising herself for her rapid initiative.
Their eyes met, and for that second Bulma became aware that she was being intimated by someone of the same height, if not for his strange gravity defying hair. She saw her reflection in his black eyes, an abyss; he was dangerous.
A long arm came swooping from behind her a lifted her in the air by the collar.
'What do you want to do with them?' Raditz seethed covered in ash and dirt.
'Let's take 'em prisoner make 'em our slaves,' he continued with a toothy grin as he peered forward into Bulma's face.
'Where do you come from?' Vegeta asked with his hands upon his hips, his gaze flicked between Bulma and Krillin dangling in the air.
Before they could answer, Raditz interrupted, 'Some back water planet, it's probably of no concern.'
'Quiet!'
Vegeta continued, 'I want to know where the beings who believe they can undermine the Saiyan Empire originate.'
He truly was curious as to where she had procured such a weapon that had slipped under the Empire's radar. Perhaps it may be of some use, or perhaps the source should be quelled.
'Earth' Bulma whispered. Krillin looked upon her with understanding eyes, of course they had just signed the death warrant upon their entire planet, but who wanted to die at the hands of the Saiyans. He had run out of his opportunities on the deus ex dragonballs.
Vegeta adjusted his gloves and pulling them tighter, raising his hand as his fingers flexed into the mould.
'If these Earth-ians-
'Earthlings' Bulma corrected with an earnest smile upon her face. She heard an exasperated groan from not only Krillin but also the brute above her. What everyone said was true: she really did not know when to quit.
'I don't care what you are! be quiet!' Vegeta stiffened in annoyance and cleared his throat.
'If these "Earthlings" think they are so powerful, that they believe themselves important enough to participate in the trading of dwarf-planets, then why don't we pay them a little visit.'
The earthlings both swallowed in fear, as if they were finally choking on the reality of the threat had became all apparent. The murder party was going to travel to them. She was definitely not going to be in Kami's good books.
'You don't want to go to Earth, you'll hate it! Lava everywhere. Food is terrible!' She laughed awkwardly as Raditz jilted her in a futile attempt to silence her.
'Sir with all due respect, shouldn't we continue our mission?'
He pleaded in his native tongue.
Bulma took this opportunity to muster the courage she had left, she was a desperate woman she had to try everything, no harm in that she concluded.
'You can't do this! I'm calling the galactic patrol!' She yelped, waving her arms and legs.
A strong swelling feeling was aroused in Vegeta's stomach. He began to twitch, for all of his attempts to withhold his laughter had been in vain. The woman had just told his favourite joke.
As he wiped the tears from his eyes, it was certain that he was finding this little outing quite entertaining; albeit he would have preferred to be incinerating and tearing pirates limb from limb. And no skirmish could possibly outrank the time he beat a sad excuse for an assassin to a bloody pulp, returning him to his sender. Still, he was entertained by this farce unfurling before him.
Raditz's top lip curved in confusion upon the sight of his Prince's tail becoming slightly relaxed around his waist. It was out of the ordinary. Bulma's eyes followed suit.
'Does he normally just switch off like that?' Her voice hummed in a quick whisper. She knew little about these aliens, but already she had gathered that space-fabio here followed shorty's orders. Raditz tilted his head to the side, it reminded her of a puppy.
'No,' his voice trailed off.
Vegeta turned to them with a grin that filled everyone's stomach with uneasiness. It looked small and sharp, revealing one of his canines. If it were not so sinister, Bulma would have sworn he looked like a boy at Christmas, opening his presents early. Her assumption was not false, Vegeta was stirred with excitement, it felt like a millennia since he had conquered a planet. He found the woman's squirming endearing and he wanted to see more of it.
Vegeta pushed on his scouter, 'Kakarot get here now!'
There was a sudden flash of confusion in the humans' eyes when Kakarot emerged from over the pink horizon. Bulma shot a quick glance to her friend with raised eyebrows, their faces returning to a neutral expression mere seconds after.
The youngest Saiyan landed softly on the ground, surveyed the situation, looking at the Earthlings dangled like coats in his brother's arms.
'Well I'm glad we're getting to know the locals,' he chuckled, scratching his thick rebellious black hair. He was met with silence.
'Kakarot escort these creatures back to "Eeaarth" and send me the coordinates. The blue haired harpy was hilarious'. Vegeta ordered, flashing Bulma that same arrogant smile. She scowled, wanting to scream at him, but refused to give him the benefit of the doubt. She turned away, and let out a squeak of disdain highlighting her self bestowed superiority.
Kararot placed his right fist in the centre of his chest and nodded, 'Yes Sir General.'
Raditz dropped them with a thud, disturbing the ground. Krillin soothed his flank, he sensed that was going leave one hell of a bruise. Looking at her friend, Bulma was fuming, how dare she be treated with such impertinence.
'Owh! You brute!' she squealed, kicking her feet amongst the rose coloured dust.
Vegeta let out a sharp laugh, this woman does not miss a trick he sarcastically thought.
She continued her disrespect, sticking out her tongue. Before Raditz could interject, to his surprise his brother pushed him away. All thoughts of chastising the woman were suddenly diminish, when his brother started doing something odd. Well odd for him.
He pulled the earthlings onto their feet, and ignited a tiny ball of Ki in his outstretched palm. He tried to sound menacing,'Get on the ship you smelly aliens.'
He began robotically marching, behind them leaving Raditz and Vegeta in pure bewilderment.
'Take me to your stinky planet, you er-you dummies!' He continued peppering his taunts with various grunts and growls.
The two humans to place their hands above their head
'Don't hurt us!' They whelped, scurrying as Kakarot momentarily picked up Bulma's gun and followed them.
Vegeta and Raditz mouths hung upon at the sight of this display, the watched their teammate continue to awkwardly march into a large spherical ship.
'What the hell was that about?' Muttered Raditz, as a ball of hope emerged in his mind that perhaps his brother was finally, in his own haphazard way, catching on to the Saiyan way.
